Center point drill and center point drill attachment

ABSTRACT

A newly configured centerpoint drill and a drill attachment device that can be attached to a conventional cordless drill include configurations that require a user&#39;s hand to be in direct alignment with the keyless chuck of the drill to enable a user or operator to apply maximum pressure or force during use of a drill to reduce time and effort spent by a user/operator.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to provisional patent applicationhaving Ser. No. 62/478,108, filed Mar. 29, 2017, and non-provisionalpatent application having Ser. No. 15/940,866, filed Mar. 29, 2018,which are herein incorporated by reference in their entireties.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention is generally directed to a center point drill anda center point drill attachment that can be attached to a power drillfor enabling a user to apply maximum force during use of the drill. Thecenter point drill attachment includes a vertical elongated housing, aseries of gears contained within the housing, a short shaft extendingfrom a back exterior of the housing that is capable of being attached tothe chuck of a standard power drill, a quick release chuck or keylesschuck positioned on a front exterior of the housing that is connected tothe series of gears, and an attachment mechanism for attaching thecenter point drill attachment to the bottom of a standard power drill.

The center point drill is a cordless power drill having the keylesschuck or the quick release chuck of a standard power drill moved downacross from the center of the drill handle right in front of theoperator's fist. The drill includes a generally triangular shapedhousing having a middle opening large enough to inert a user's fingerstherethrough which appears like a generally triangular ring like shape.A battery is contained within one side of the triangular ring shapedhousing, a motor and gearbox are contained within another side of thetriangular ring shaped housing, and a trigger mechanism is containedwithin the last side of the triangular ring shaped housing. A quickrelease chuck is located on the flattened face of an exterior corner ofthe triangular ring shaped housing so that at least part of the triggermechanism is in longitudinal alignment with the chuck. The activationtrigger for the center point drill can be a standard switch systemequipped with a heat sink, terminals, and a forward/reverse switch. Themotor, separate gears, and battery for the center point drill may alsobe standard items.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Cordless power tools were invented by Black & Decker back in the early1960s and reduced the amount of time that a contractor had to spend on ajob because they could just grab a power tool and screw, drill, or cutwithin a few seconds. The reduced amount of time spent on jobs meantthat builders could move onto the next job more quickly and couldincrease the number of jobs they did per year.

Over the past decades, the volt size of the batteries, the range oftools that are cordless, and the weight of cordless power tools havechanged. This is due to the advancement in different technologies suchas battery technologies and the material compositions used to make thepower tools.

Cordless drills commonly have a pistol grip and are also available inthe hammer drill configuration. Most have a clutch, which aids indriving screws into various substrates while not damaging them. Rightangle drills are also available which allow a worker to drive screws ina tight space. However, currently used cordless drills fail to provide aconfiguration in which a user can apply the greatest pressure or forcewhen drilling or attaching screws, thereby reducing the time and effortrequired by the user to complete a job. Reducing the time and effortrequired by the user also reduces user fatigue.

Accordingly, there is a need for a cordless drill and a cordless drillattachment capable of being attached to a conventional cordless drillthat include a configuration that enables a user to apply maximumpressure or force during use to reduce time and effort spent by a user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a drill attachment that can beattached to a conventional cordless drill and a new cordless drillconfiguration that requires a user's hand to be in direct alignment withthe keyless chuck or the quick release chuck of the drill (these chucksallow for the easy change of drill bits). This configuration enables adrill user to apply maximum pressure or force during use to reduce timeand effort spent by the user thereby resulting in faster completion ofjobs and reduced user fatigue.

A key component of the invention is a series of gears or a planetarygear system that enables a quick release chuck or keyless chuckassociated with the drill to be positioned right in front of a user's oroperator's hand or fist. The drill attachment device of the presentinvention includes 1) a vertical elongated housing having a top and abottom, 2) a first gear contained within the housing near the top of thehousing, 3) a first short shaft having a first end attached to the firstgear and a second end capable of being attached to a chuck of a drill ordrilling tool, 4) an elongated drive shaft having a top end and a bottomend vertically positioned within the housing and contained within a tophalf of the housing, 5) a second gear connected to the top end of thedrive shaft so that the second gear is in communication with the firstgear, 6) a third gear connected to the bottom end of the drive shaft, 7)a fourth gear located within the housing near a center of the housingsuch that the fourth gear is in communication with the third gear, 8) asecond short shaft having a first end and a second end where the firstend is connected to the fourth gear, 9) a quick release chuck or keylesschuck connected to the second end of the second short shaft, and 10) anattachment member connected to an exterior of the housing near thebottom of the housing for connecting the bottom of the housing to adrill or drilling tool.

The first, second, third, and fourth gears may all be bevel gears orspine gears. The tooth-bearing faces of the bevel gears are conicallyshaped and the teeth may be straight or curved. Spline gears have ridgesor teeth that mesh with an equal number of like ridges or teeth. Thedrill attachment device may also include an adjustment screw mechanismso that the bottom half of the drill attachment device can be raised orlowered depending on the size of the existing drill or drilling toolthat you are attaching it to. The screw tightens the adjustmentmechanism that slides up and down. The vertical elongated housing isnarrow in width, i.e. it is clearly considerably longer/higher than itis wide. The quick release chuck or keyless chuck is located on a frontexterior of the housing. The attachment member extends from a backexterior of the housing. The attachment member may be one or more springclip members that can easily be used to clip the bottom of the drillattachment device to the bottom of a standard drill or drilling tool.The gear system (namely the first, second, third, and fourth gears aswell as the elongated drive shaft and first and second short shafts) mayall be contained within an oil bath contained within the housing. Theoil bath may comprise only a portion of the interior of the housing suchas the top half of the housing.

The center point drill of the present invention includes a generallytriangular ring shaped housing having an opening in a middle of thehousing large enough to insert a user's fingers therethrough, a batterycontained within a first side of the generally triangular ring shapedhousing, a motor, a driver, and a first gear contained within a secondside of the generally triangular ring shaped housing, a second gearcontained within a corner of the generally triangular ring shapedhousing located between the first and second sides of the housing suchthat the second gear is in communication with the first gear, a quickrelease chuck in communication with the second gear wherein the quickrelease chuck is located on a flattened face of an exterior corner ofthe generally triangular ring shaped housing, and a trigger mechanismcontained within the third side of the generally triangular ring shapedhousing wherein at least a portion of the trigger mechanism is locatedon an exterior surface of the middle opening of the generally triangularring shaped housing. The middle opening of the generally triangular ringshaped housing may also have a generally triangular shape. The first andsecond gears of the center point drill may be bevel gears or splinegears.

The center point drill may also include a direction switch connected tothe trigger mechanism to change the direction of rotation of the quickrelease chuck. The driver may include an impact spindle and an impacthammer located between the motor and first gear as well as reductiongears. The spindle and reduction gears may include splines that meshwith one another to transfer torque from one to the other. The spindleand reduction gears may also be bevel gears. In one aspect of theinvention, at least a portion of the trigger mechanism contained withinthe third side of the generally triangular ring shaped housing is inlongitudinal alignment with the quick release chuck. An outer exteriorsurface of the third side of the generally triangular ring shapedhousing containing the trigger mechanism may be slightly rounded toaccommodate a user's grip when the user's fingers are placed through themiddle opening of the generally triangular ring shaped housing.

The battery in the center point drill may be contained within acompartment within the housing that is accessible form an exterior ofthe housing for easy battery removal and replacement. The generallytriangular ring shaped housing may be made of top and bottom halves thatcan be secured to one another with screws. The generally triangular ringshaped housing may also include a number of openings in top and bottomsurfaces of the housing located near where the motor is contained withinthe housing in order to vent heat from an interior of the housing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one exemplary embodiment of the centerpoint drill of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the interior and interior components ofthe center point drill of the present invention shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the center point drill of the presentinvention shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of thedrill attachment device of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the drill attachment device of the presentinvention shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is the drill attachment device of the present invention depictedin FIG. 4 showing a partial interior view of the drill attachment devicewith a portion of the exterior housing shown cut away;

FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view of the drill attachment device ofthe present invention shown in FIG. 5 taken along the vertical elongatedlength of the device;

FIG. 8 is a rear perspective view of the drill attachment device of thepresent invention shown in FIG. 4 with a portion of the top half of thehousing shown removed to expose the interior components of the device;

FIG. 9 is a rear perspective view of the drill attachment device shownin FIG. 8 with the most of the top half of the housing of the deviceshown replaced over the internal components of the device;

FIG. 10 is a partial magnified view of the drill attachment device ofthe present invention shown in FIG. 8 showing the attachment means ofthe device for attaching the bottom of the device to the bottom of adrill or drilling tool; and

FIG. 11 is a side view of another exemplary embodiment of the drillattachment device of the present invention shown attached to aconventional drill.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

The present invention is directed to a newly configured center pointdrill that positions a user's hand in direct alignment with the chuck ofthe drill which enables a user or operator to apply maximum pressure orforce while using the drill thereby reducing time and effort spent bythe user/operator. The configuration of the center point drill of thepresent invention also balances the weight of the heaviest components ofthe drill thereby making it easier and less cumbersome to use withoutthe hand, wrist and arm fatigue experienced with prior art drills. Thepresent invention is also directed to a center point drill attachmentdevice which enables a user/operator to attach the device to anyexisting drill or drilling tool to attain a position with their handthat is in direct alignment with the chuck of a drill therebyfacilitating efficient use of the drill while reducing user fatigue.

A perspective view of one exemplary embodiment of the center point drill10 of the present invention is shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1,center point drill 10 has a housing 12 having a generally triangularring shaped configuration with an opening 14 in the middle that is largeenough for a user to insert their fingers through it so that the drill10 can be properly gripped for use. Middle opening 14 may also have agenerally triangular shape. The outer perspective view of the drill 10shown in FIG. 1 also shows a quick release chuck 38 (such as a quickrelease hex bit chuck), an activation trigger 18, a removable accessdoor 20 to access the battery used with the cordless drill 10, and aplurality of small openings 22 located near the motor contained withinthe housing 12 which function to vent heat from the interior of thehousing 12.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the interior and interior components ofthe center point drill 10 of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 withthe top of the housing 12 shown cut away or removed. Center point drill10 includes a battery 24 contained within a first side 26 of thegenerally triangular ring shaped housing 12 and a motor 28, a driver 30,and a first gear 32 (see FIG. 3) contained within a second side 34 ofthe generally triangular ring shaped housing 12. A second gear 36 iscontained within a corner of the generally triangular ring shapedhousing 12 located between the first and second sides 26, 34 of thehousing 12 such that the second gear 36 is in communication with thefirst gear 32 (see FIG. 3). A quick release chuck 38 is in communicationwith the second gear 36 and the quick release chuck 38 is located on aflattened face of an exterior corner 40 of the generally triangularshaped housing 12. A trigger mechanism 42 is contained within a thirdside 44 of the generally triangular ring shaped housing 12 where atleast a portion of the trigger mechanism 42, such as the activationtrigger 18, is located on an exterior surface of the middle opening 14of the generally triangular ring shaped housing 12. An outer exteriorsurface of the third side 42 of the generally triangular ring shapedhousing 12 containing the trigger mechanism 42 may be slightly roundedand/or indented in areas to comfortably accommodate a user's grip whenthe user's fingers are placed through middle opening 14. The generallytriangular ring shaped housing 12 may include a top half and a bottomhalf that are secured together using a number of screw posts 46contained within the housing and screws. Generally triangular ringshaped housing 12 is preferably made of a suitable lightweight materialsuch as a polymer material or light weight metal like aluminum, forexample, that is strong and durable and that can withstand heat andpressure.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the center point drill of the presentinvention shown in FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 3, battery 24 may becontained within a compartment 48 contained within housing 12 that iseasily accessible from an exterior of the housing 12 via removableaccess door 20. Center point drill 10 may also include direction switch50 which may be connected to trigger mechanism 42 and which changes thedirection of rotation of the chuck 38. As shown in the exemplaryembodiment shown in FIG. 3, an impact spindle may be connected to motor28 via reduction gears 54. Ball bearings 56 separated by an impacttorsion spring 58 may be included between the impact spindle 52 and thedriver/impact hammer 30. An impact anvil 60 and washers 62 may beinserted between the driver/impact hammer 30 and the first gear 32. Inaddition, a ball bearing 56 may be positioned between the second gear 36and the quick release chuck 38. The first and second gears 32, 36 may bebevel gears or spline gears. At least a portion of the trigger mechanism42 contained within the third side 44 of the triangular ring shapedhousing 12 is in longitudinal alignment with the quick release chuck 38(see FIG. 2).

A front perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of the drillattachment device 100 of the present invention is shown in FIG. 4 andFIG. 5 is a side view of the drill attachment device 100 of the presentinvention shown in FIG. 4. Drill attachment device 100 includes avertical elongated housing 102 having a top 104 and a bottom 106, achuck 108, such as a quick release chuck or a keyless chuck, located ona front exterior surface of the housing 102, and an attachment member110 connected to an exterior of the housing 102 near the bottom 106 ofhousing 102 for connecting the bottom 106 of the housing 102 to anexisting drill or drilling tool. Drill attachment device 100 alsoincludes a second end 118 of a first short shaft member 114 that iscapable of being connected or attached to a chuck of an existing drillor drilling tool (see FIGS. 6-8).

FIG. 6 is the drill attachment device 100 of the present inventiondepicted in FIG. 4 showing a partial interior view of the drillattachment device 100 with a portion of the exterior housing 102 showncut away and FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view of the drillattachment device 100 of the present invention shown in FIG. 5 takenalong the vertical elongated length of the device. Drill attachmentdevice 100 further includes a first gear 112 contained within thehousing 102 near a top end 104 of housing 102, a first short shaftmember 114 having a first end 116 attached to the first gear 112 and asecond end 118 capable of being attached or connected to a chuck of anexisting drill or drilling tool, an elongated drive shaft 120 having atop end and a bottom end contained within a top half of the housing 102,a second gear 122 connected to the top end of the drive shaft 120 suchthat the second gear 122 is in communication with the first gear 112, athird gear 124 connected to the bottom end of the drive shaft 120, afourth gear 126 located within the housing 102 near a center of thehousing 102 such that the fourth gear 126 is in communication with thethird gear 124, and a second short shaft member 128 having a first endand a second end where the second end is connected to the fourth gear126. The quick release chuck 108 is connected to the second end of thesecond short shall member 12 and the attachment member 110 is connectedto the housing 102 near a bottom 106 exterior of housing 102. Ballbearings 130 may be positioned on the drive shaft 120 near the secondand third gears 122, 124.

First, second, third, and fourth gears 112, 122, 124, 126 may be bevelgears or spline gears. Attachment member 110 may include one or morespring clips 134 and an extension spring 136 that can easily be used toclip the bottom 106 of the drill attachment device 100 to the bottom ofa standard drill or drilling tool. The gear system (namely the first,second, third, and fourth gears 112, 122, 124, 126 as well as theelongated drive shaft 120 and first and second short shafts 114, 128)may all be contained within an oil bath contained within the housing102. The oil bath may comprise only a portion of the interior of thehousing 102 such as the top half of the housing.

The drill attachment device 100 may also include an adjustment screwmechanism for raising or lowering the bottom half of the drillattachment device depending on the size of the existing drill ordrilling tool that you are attaching it to. The screw tightens theadjustment mechanism that slides up and down. The vertical elongatedhousing 102 is narrow in width, i.e. it is clearly considerablylonger/higher than it is wide. The housing 102 is preferably made of asuitable lightweight material such as a polymer material or a lightweight metal like aluminum, for example, that is strong and durable andthat can withstand heat and pressure.

FIG. 11 is a side view of another exemplary embodiment of the drillattachment device 200 of the present invention shown attached to aconventional drill 250. The drill attachment device 200 has a verticalelongated housing 202 having a top half 201 and a bottom half 203 thatare slightly angled in relation to one another as compared to thevertical elongated housing 102 in the drill attachment device 100 shownin FIGS. 4-9. The interior components of drill attachment device 200 aresimilar to the internal components of drill attachment device 100 shownin FIGS. 4-9. A top of the housing 202 of drill attachment device 200 isconnected to the chuck 205 of conventional drill 250 and a bottom ofhousing 202 of drill attachment device 200 is attached or connected to abottom of convention drill 250 by an attachment member 210 such as oneor more spring clips, for example. As can be seen in FIG. 11, chuck 208of drill attachment device 200 is positioned in longitudinal alignmentwith a center height of the conventional drill 250. Screws 209 may beused to secure opposite sections of the housing 202 together or tosecure a front cover onto the housing 202.

The drawings and description of exemplary embodiments of the inventionherein shows various exemplary embodiments of the invention. Theseexemplary embodiments and modes are described in sufficient detail toenable those skilled in the art to practice the invention and are notintended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of theinvention in any way. Rather, the following disclosure is intended toteach both the implementation of the exemplary embodiments and modes andany equivalent modes or embodiments that are known or obvious to thosereasonably skilled in the art. Additionally, all included examples arenon-limiting illustrations of the exemplary embodiments and modes, whichsimilarly avail themselves to any equivalent modes or embodiments thatare known or obvious to those reasonably skilled in the art.

Other combinations and/or modifications of structures, arrangements,applications, proportions, elements, materials, or components used inthe practice of the instant invention, in addition to those notspecifically recited, can be varied or otherwise particularly adapted tospecific environments, manufacturing specifications, design parameters,or other operating requirements without departing from the scope of theinstant invention and are intended to be included in this disclosure.

Unless specifically noted, it is the Applicant's intent that the wordsand phrases in the specification and the claims be given the commonlyaccepted generic meaning or an ordinary and accustomed meaning used bythose of ordinary skill in the applicable arts. In the instance wherethese meanings differ, the words and phrases in the specification andthe claims should be given the broadest possible, generic meaning. Ifany other special meaning is intended for any word or phrase, thespecification will clearly state and define the special meaning.

1. A drill attachment device comprising: a vertical elongated housingmember having a top and a bottom; a first gear contained within thehousing near a top of the housing; a first short shaft member having afirst end attached to the first gear and a second end capable of beingattached to a chuck of a drill; an elongated drive shaft having a topend and a bottom end contained within a top half of the housing; asecond gear connected to the top end of the drive shaft such that thesecond gear is in communication with the first gear; a third gearconnected to the bottom end of the drive shaft; a fourth gear locatedwithin the housing near a center of the housing such that the fourthgear is in communication with the third gear; a second short shaftmember having a first end and a second end wherein the first end isconnected to the fourth gear; a quick release chuck or a keyless chuckconnected to the second end of the second short shaft member; and anattachment member connected to an exterior of the housing near thebottom of the housing for connecting the bottom of the housing to adrill.
 2. The drill attachment device of claim 1 wherein the first gear,second gear, third gear and fourth gear are bevel gears.
 3. The drillattachment device of claim 1 wherein the first gear, second gear, thirdgear and fourth gear are spline gears.
 4. The drill attachment device ofclaim 1 further comprising an adjustment screw mechanism for raising orlowering a bottom half of the vertical elongated housing member in orderfor the drill attachment device to accommodate different sizes ofexisting drills.
 5. The drill attachment device of claim 1 wherein theattachment member comprises at least one spring clip member.
 6. Thedrill attachment device of claim 1 wherein vertical elongated housing isnarrow in width.
 7. The drill attachment device of claim 1 wherein thequick release chuck or the keyless chuck are located on a front exteriorof the housing.
 8. The drill attachment device of claim 1 wherein theattachment member extends from a back exterior of the housing.
 9. Thedrill attachment device of claim 1 wherein the first, second, third andfourth gears along with the elongated drive shaft and first and secondshort shaft members are all contained within an oil bath containedwithin the housing.
 10. A drill attachment device comprising: a verticalelongated housing; a series of gears contained within a top half of thehousing; an end of a short shaft member extending from a top backexterior of the housing that is capable of being attached to a chuck ofan existing drill; a quick release chuck or a keyless chuck positionedon a front exterior of the housing located near a midpoint of a verticalheight of the housing wherein the quick release chuck or keyless chuckis connected to the series of gears; and an attachment mechanism forattaching a bottom of the housing to a bottom of an existing drill. 11.The drill attachment device of claim 10 further comprising an adjustmentscrew mechanism for raising or lowering a bottom half of the verticalelongated housing member in order for the drill attachment device toaccommodate different sizes of existing drills.
 12. The drill attachmentdevice of claim 10 wherein the attachment mechanism comprises at leastone spring clip member.
 13. The drill attachment device of claim 10wherein vertical elongated housing is narrow in width.
 14. The drillattachment device of claim 10 wherein the quick release chuck or thekeyless chuck are located on a front exterior of the housing.
 15. Thedrill attachment device of claim 10 wherein the attachment mechanismextends from a back exterior of the housing.